


A year of training and love

by RyuRaven



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-08
Updated: 2015-05-08
Packaged: 2018-03-29 14:40:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3900037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RyuRaven/pseuds/RyuRaven
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The story starts on the first day of training. At first Mikasa only thinks about Eren, but then she starts getting closer to Sasha.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this about a year and half ago, but only just created an account here. I'll stick to the chapters though.

** A year of training and love **

Chapter 1

In the year 847 Mikasa Ackerman, Eren Jeager and Armin Arlelt left the landfill they had been working on to join the trainees squad in order to become soldiers. After receiving their uniform they lined up on the training grounds. Shadis walked past the lines of new recruits, giving each of them a fright with his intimidating gaze.

“Hey, you there!” He suddenly yelled as he passed Armin.

“Sir!” Armin shouted in reply, his heart beating in his throat.

“Who the hell are you?!” Shadis yelled, his spit flying at Armins face.

“Armin Arlelt, sir! From the Shinganshina district!”

“Oh yeah? Silly name! Did your parents gave it to you?

“My grandfather did, sir!”

“Arlelt! What are you here for?”

“To contribute towards humankind’s victory, sir!”

“That’s what I like to hear! You’re gonna make great titan food when it comes to that!” He messed  up Armins hair and turned around. “Third line, look behind you!” Armin let out a sigh of relief as Shadis walked towards the next person. As his heart went back to its normal pace, he looked at the person who was being yelled at now.

“Who the hell are you?!”

“Conny Springer, sir! From the village of Ragako, in wall Rose’s southern district!”

Shadis looked at Conny’s salute, then lifted the boy from the ground by grabbing his head. “You got it backwards, Conny Springer! It must be one of the first things you learned! This salute is meant to represent your resolve to commit your very heart to public service! Is your heart on the right side, Conny?!”

Then Shadis saw something far more horrific than a backwards salute. He dropped Conny and spoke to a girl in the line behind him. “You there… what’s the big idea?”

The girl looked at Shadis, then to the potato she was holding, and bit in it. Shadis rushed towards her and yelled “You! I’m talking to you, damnit! Who the hell are you?!”

The girl quickly swallowed and replied “My name is Sasha Braus, sir! From the village of Dauper, wall Rose’s southern district!”

Shadis looked at the potato she was still holding. “Sasha Braus… what is that thing you’re holding in your right hand?”

“A steamed potato, sir! It was in the kitchen, and I thought it was just what I needed! I didn’t think this through!”

“You mean you stole it… why did you… pull out that potato to eat… now of all times?

“I wanted to eat it while it was still hot, there’s no point otherwise. So I reckoned it was now or never.”

“Well I don’t get it. Why did you eat that potato?”

“Is that a “Why do people eat potatoes?” kind of question?” Everyone looked at Sasha with big eyes. After a moment of silence Sasha got an idea. She broke a small piece of off the potato and held it out to Shadis.

“Here is half of it… for you.”

Bewildered he accepted the piece of the potato. “A half…?” He looked back at the girl, who had a big smile on her face. He pulled himself back together, grabbed the rest of the potato and said in a low voice “Sasha Braus. You will run rounds at the training grounds, and don’t stop until you drop. Understood?”

“Yes, sir!”

“And you will be skipping the meals today too.”

“What! But-”

“No buts, start running. Now!”

“Sir!” She jogged out of the lines, as she passes Mikasa she muttered “To think I offered him half of that potato.”

During dinner Mikasa quietly watched as Eren was telling the other boys about the titans. It didn’t take long for him to get in an argument. Mikasa sighed to herself. _Somehow, he always manages to get on peoples bad side._ Luckily the situation didn’t escalate, and when Eren left the dining hall she got up from her seat and followed him. She passed the boy he had been arguing with.

“Hey, you.” He said.

She turned to look at him. Err, um… I never saw anyone who looked like you before. Um… sorry. You have beautiful black hair.”

“Thanks.” She turned back and continued her pursuit of Eren. “Eren.” She called to get his attention. “What were you thinking, you almost got in a fight again.”

“The hell, no. I wasn’t getting in a fight.” He replied annoyed.

“I take my eyes off you for a second and this is what happens.”

“Here we go again… But more importantly, isn’t your hair a bit too long? Great way to get into an accident during the maneuver drills.”

Mikasa looked at her hair, thinking of the compliment she just got on it. But Eren was probably right, besides, if she got into an accident she wouldn’t be able to protect him anymore.

“Yeah, alright, I’ll cut it. But how short do you think it should be?”

Later that day, as the sun had just set, Sasha dragged her feet, with every step she took nearly falling over. _He really made me run ‘till I almost died._ She dropped to her knees and fell headfirst to the ground. _So many things… I still wanted… to eat._ After lying there a while she suddenly smelled something. She jumped at the person walking towards her, landing with a piece of bread in her mouth. She took it in her hands and enthusiastically said “Bread!”

“It’s not much, but I thought you could use it.” said the blonde girl she had jumped at. “Still… it might be better to drink some water first.”

Sasha grabbed the girl by her shoulders and said “God! Is that you? My lord and savior!” Then she devoured the bread at lightning speed.

Another girl approached the scene. “Hey there. What do you think you’re doing?”

“Um… wel, she’s done nothing but run for a while so…”

“Not potato girl, you. What do you think you’re doing?”

“Me?” The blond girl looked at the other with wide eyes.

“I saw you hide that loaf during dinner and it pissed me off. Just like those kids who raise a pet behind their parents back, you know. Now, tell me, you think you’re doing the right thing, huh? Did you do it for potato girl? Is the sense of accomplishment and exaltation you get out of this worth the effort?”

“I chose to do this… because I wanted to be seen as someone you can count on.”

“Is that it?” She looked at Sasha who was now sleeping on the blonde girls lap. “Anyway, let’s get potato girl to her bed. You’d have a hard time carrying her on your own, wouldn’t you?”

“Um… Why would you choose to do the ‘right thing’?”

“If I do her a favor she’ll owe me, that’s why. I can get profit out of her stupidity.”

Mikasa was sitting on her bed, thinking about her first day at the academy, when the dorm's door opened and two girls dragged Sasha in.  They laid her down on the only free bed left, the one below Mikasa's.

"She sure is heavy." said the blonde girl.

"Probably because she eats so much. Err, what was your name again?."

"I'm Christa, You are Ymir, right?" Said girl nodded.

Mikasa looked at the two girls as they walked away. They seemed to get along. She never had friends, mostly because she used to live so far away from other people before she met Eren. Eren was her family, and that was all she needed. She took off the red scarf, placed it next to her pillow and went to sleep.

Mikasa woke up, but it was still dark. As silent as she could she climbed down, glancing at Sasha to make sure she didn’t wake her up. She still wore her uniform. A beam of moonlight fell onto the brunets face, the peaceful look on her face made Mikasa forget all the hardships she had been through for a moment. _She’s so pretty… maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to be friends with her._ Mikasa felt her cheeks getting warm as she looked at the other girl, and a weird sensation grew inside her stomach. She closed her eyes for a moment and the weird feeling in her stomach went away. She turned around and continued her way to the restroom, the floor creaking under her footsteps. Behind her someone stirred in their sleep.

When Mikasa returned she found Sasha sitting on her bed, this time in her pajamas. She looked up when she heard her coming, a carrot sticking out of her mouth. The moment their eyes met, the weird sensation returned to Mikasa’s stomach.

“Why are you eating in the middle of the night?” she asked.

“Well, I woke up feeling kinda hungry, and it so happened I still had this carrot lying around.”

“You had it… lying around?” Mikasa wondered as the other girl took the final bite.

“No, you got it wrong! I didn’t steal it together with that potato and hid it here!” Sasha said, waving her hands in denial, making it obvious she was lying.

“It’s ok, I won’t tell anyone... But why are you so crazy about food?” Mikasa said while sitting down next to the other girl.

“When wall Shina fell, we had to share our food with the refugees and I always went to bed hungry. So I ended up stealing food whenever the opportunity presented itself.” The look on her face was grim, as if she was recalling a bad memory.

“I see. But don’t worry, I’m sure we will get enough food here.” Sasha gave her a little smile. “We should go back to bed. Goodnight, Sasha.”

“Yeah, ‘night, Mikasa.”


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The next morning the cadets lined up at the training grounds.

Shadis looked at the new recruits and said, “First thing, let’s see if you’re good for something! Just tie the ropes to both sides of your waist and hand down from there!. Use your full body belts for balance, those who can’t do that will be used as bait! We’ll send you to the landfills.”

A little nervous Mikasa attached the ropes to her belt, but when they pulled her up she found it to be remarkably easy. She looked over at Sasha, and saw that she too had no problem hanging there. They put her back down and she watched as the other recruits pulled it off. Until it was Eren’s turn. The moment they pulled him up he swinged forward, and as result he ended up hanging upside down. Shadis lowered himself to look Eren in the eyes.

“What’s the big idea, Eren Jeager?! Upper body up!”

Mikasa could see the shock in his eyes, as he was unable to do the one thing most important in order to become a soldier. Later that day, after training was over, she and Armin stayed with Eren as he continued to try.

“Stay calm and try to balance your weight. “ said Mikasa.

“I’m bad at psychics and even I can pull it off. So you should be able to do it too.” said Armin.

“Ok, I’m ready. Armin, pull me up.”

As soon as his feet were lifted from the ground, he fell forward and hit his head hard on the ground. Armin quickly let him down and released the ropes from Eren’s belt. Together with Mikasa they carried him to the infirmary.

During dinner Eren was still light in his head and forgot he had to eat until Mikasa pinched his shoulder.

“Eren! Worrying about it won’t change a thing.”

“Yeah, if you can pull it off tomorrow everything is gonna be okay.” said Armin.

“But what if I can’t pull it off tomorrow. I won’t know what to do with myself.”

“Come on, it’s no use losing sleep over it for now.” said Armin.

“This is pathetic, how am I supposed to deal with them now?”

“Maybe you should just forget about the whole extermination thing.” Mikasa interrupted.

“Huh?”

“If you’re not cut out for this, well then that’s just the way it is. If you can barely pull your weight then the only thing you can manage is die pointlessly. All your dreams and efforts will have been for nothing.”

“Say what…?” Eren looked at her with a shocked look on his face.

“I’m saying that you don’t have to be a soldier. Supporting humankind as a manufacturer is also an option. Fighting is not just about throwing your life away.”

“What the…? I trust I don’t need to remind you what I saw on that day? And you think your little argument is gonna convince me?”

“…Still, how resolute you are is hardly important.”

“What do you mean?”

“Whether you become a soldier or not is not for you to decide.”

When he didn’t reply Mikasa looked at Eren and saw him glaring angry at her while eating his dish. Feeling bad she tried to come up with something that might make him feel better. As she spoke she looked at the table, not daring to meet the angry look in his eyes again.

“I’m not saying you’d be the only one going back to the landfills. When that happens I’ll be going too. So… you should not let it trouble you.” Carefully she looked up, wondering if her words had the hoped effect. But instead of Eren, she was looking at Sasha.

“Um, What do you mean?” said Sasha. “Are you saying I can have that if I want?” pointing at what was left of Mikasa’s meal.

Mikasa picked up the bread, looked at Sasha’s hopeful eyes and outstretched hand, and bit in it. The disappointed look in Sasha’s eyes gave Mikasa a mixed feeling. It felt good to work out her frustration on someone else, but at the same time she felt bad for Sasha. Before she could decide whether she’d give her a piece or not, Ymir called out from the doorpost.

“What ‘re you doing, Sasha? What happened to me and Christa’s part of the water drawing shore?”

“Yes! Right away, my savior, my god…” She hurriedly went outside with the other girls.

Now Mikasa was the only one left at the dining hall. She looked at the half eaten bread in her hand. Water drawing was pretty hard work. She put the bread in her pocket and went to the girls dorm. When she was sure nobody saw her, she took the bread out of her pocked and placed it underneath Sasha’s pillow.

By the time Sasha and the other two girls returned, Mikasa was already in her bed. When she heard a pair of footsteps growing louder, she got nervous. Wondering why she continued to listen as the footsteps stopped below her bunk. The rustling of sheets, a gasp and an excited moan, followed by the sound of Sasha devouring the bread.

Mikasa’s nervousness faded, and she rolled over to the side of her bed, hoping to catch a glimpse of Sasha’s happy face. But she could not see anything directly below her without attracting attention, so she lay back down on her pillow. But when she heard Sasha whisper “Thank you, my saving angel.”, a warm feeling spread across her body, and she fell asleep happily.

The next day, the recruits lined up again to have a last try at the basics for the 3DMG. Eren stood a bit away from the rest of the group, together with Shadis and another soldier. Mikasa watched as Eren tied the ropes to his belt once more. She hoped he would succeed this time, so that their fight would end.

His feet got lifted from the ground, but unlike the previous times, he was able to stay upright. Mikasa smiled at the sight of his victorious face.

But his victorious look quickly changed into one of shock as he suddenly fell down again.

“Let him down.” Shadis said.

“No, not yet!” Eren said desperately.

“Wagner, exchange your equipment with Jeager’s.”

After Eren switched belts, it was rather easy to stay upright. “Yeah!” They heard him shout.

“If that look on his face isn’t triumph, I don’t know what it is.” Armin said, waving his hand at Eren.

“It isn’t.” Mikasa said a little down. “He’s thinking about how he won’t need to stay close to me anymore, and it makes him happy.”

Later that day they went to what looked like an archery terrain. A long line of large, wooden targets reached to the edge of the training field, one for two people. They got their 3DMG and had to pair up. Mikasa looked at Eren but he already paired up with Armin, he hadn’t spoken to her after he passed the aptitude test. Disappointed Mikasa looked around, wondering who she should pair up with now. She found Sasha amongst the crowd.

“Sasha, have you paired up with someone already?” she asked.

“Nope.”

“Then maybe we could pair up.” There was it again, that weird sensation in her stomach. She really had to do something about it, as it kept her from concentrating.

“Hey! Potato girl!” Conny shouted as he caught sight of Sasha. “Wanna pair up?”

“Sorry, I just paired up with Mikasa.”

“What? I thought no one would want to pair up with you, potato girl.” he said.

Mikasa walked up to the smaller boy, and looked down on him with a scary face. “Her name is Sasha, not potato girl. Got it?”

The boy stepped back, with a frightened look on his face. “I was just kidding, really.”

“Thanks for standing up for me.” Sasha said as the boy ran away.

Mikasa buried her face in her scarf, hoping she wouldn’t see her blush. Together they walked to one of the targets. They stopped at the line drawn ten meters in front of it. The target was white, with a bright red dot in the middle. They had to practice aiming with their 3DMG, it was one of the most important things they had to learn.

“I’ll go first!” Sasha exclaimed enthusiastically.

She shot and hit the target in the middle between the edge and the red dot, and flew towards it. Having to aim from waist height, there were a lot of trainees who hit the cliff behind the targets, or even on someone else’s target.

“Ok, your turn!” Sasha said as she came running back.

Mikasa looked at the red dot, lifted her hand, and shot. Soon she was flying over the ground, stopping abruptly as she reached the target, surprised to see she hit the bull’s eye. She dropped to the ground, about a meter below her, and ran back to Sasha.

“That was just beginners luck.” she said, clearly bothered by the fact that Mikasa had done better than her.

As the end of the day grew near, Shadis came to check on the progress of the recruits.

“Hmm, not bad for a first day.” he said after having watched the girls giving it one last shot. “Tomorrow you may start with your other hand. Don’t expect that to go as easy. Dismissed!” He walked off to the next pair.

“Food!” Sasha shouted as she started to run.

“Wait!” Mikasa placed her hand on the brunettes shoulder.

“Why? We’ll be the first ones at the dining hall.”

“We have to stock our gear away first.”

Sasha glanced at the storeroom. For safety the 3DMG was kept there, the door only unlocked for training sessions.

“That building is about as far away from the dining hall as you can get!”

“Fine, give me your gear, I’ll stock it.”

“Thank you, Mikasa!” Sasha gave her a hug and ran off, leaving a flustered Mikasa with two gears.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

A week later, on a morning were fog shrouded the training grounds, Shadis had them running for over an hour. When the sunlight finally started to filter through the whiteness surrounding them, he lead them to the storeroom.

“Today we will start some advanced maneuvering! Get your gear!”

As soon as all the recruits had their 3DMG he lead them to their destination, just beyond the line of targets they had used until now. Small, white targets stood lined up, suspended two meters high at both sides of a murky pool.

“Here’s what you’ve got to do! By using all the targets you have to reach the other side of the pool! If you miss and fall into the pool, you swim across! When you’ve reached the other side, you run back here and stand back in line! I’ll say when you can start, now who’s first?!”

The other side of the pool was barely visible through the fog, the likeliness of falling into the pool was very high. Just the thought of falling into the cold murky water send chills down the trainees’ spines.

“I’ll go first!” Eren said.

An air of relief surrounded the rest of the trainees, glad that they could see how it was before going themselves. Eren looked Shadis in the eye, then at the closest target. As soon as he shot at it, he looked at the next target, and was able to hit it too. It all seemed to go well, but due to the high speed, he missed the fifth target and plunged into the water.

“Next!” Shadis called, looking at the newly formed line.

Starting from standstill, they all were able to hit the first target, but half of them wasn’t able to reach the second. Only a handful was able to get further than Eren. As a result, all the trainees were soaked and shivering after just one try.

They slowly improved, and as the session ended at noon, a few were able to get into the double digits. A wet trail lead from the training grounds towards the dorms, where they changed before eating lunch.

In the afternoon they got their first lesson on gear maintenance, starting with water damage. It took only a few minutes for everyone to start putting their newly learned skills to the test. By tomorrow morning they would know if they had their gear cleaned properly, since they would go over today’s schedule a couple times more.

“What a day.” Sasha sighed at dinner. She now sat at the same table as Mikasa, Eren and Armin every day.

“Yeah, not very motivating knowing we’ll do just the same tomorrow.” Armin said.

“Ha!” said Eren. “In a few days I won’t be falling in that pool anymore. I’ll get used to it in no time.”

“It’s not just about getting used to it, the targets all stand at a different distance. You won’t know where the next target is until you see it. I think this is to train our reflexes.” Mikasa said.

“Perhaps, but a few days is still all I need. Just watch me!”

“Mikasaa?” Sasha interrupted their conversation.

“Hmm?”

“Can I have your bread?”

Mikasa took a look at Sasha’s cleanly licked plate.

“… one bite, no more.” She soon regretted her words, as almost half of her bread disappeared in Sasha’s mouth. The boys laughed at Mikasa’s expression as she looked at what was left of her bread.

That night, as Mikasa was at the brink of sleep, she was pulled back into the dorm room by the creaking floor. She rolled over to the side of her bed, and saw Sasha walking between the beds, attempting not to make a sound. When she reached the door she quickly slipped outside. Mikasa lay back down, intending to sleep, but a few seconds later her eyes fluttered open as she realized something. _That is not the door to the bathroom!_

Curiosity took over and she climbed down her bed. Swiftly and silently she put on her shoes and followed the brunette outside. The claw shaped moon lit up the area, but she couldn’t find her friend. Something moved in the shades of a building. Mikasa quickly headed towards it, but when she got there, none was to be seen. The soft click of a door closing caught her attention.

Mikasa crept over to the door and opened it as quietly as she could. Sasha held a candle in her left hand, and was searching the closets.

“What are you doing?” Mikasa asked, not bothering to whisper.

Sasha nearly dropped the candle as she spun around. “Mikasa?! You scared the hell outa me!” she hissed.

“What are you doing?” Mikasa repeated.

“Not so loud! Keep your voice down.” Sasha nervously looked through the window. “I’m looking for some midnight snacks.”

“Besides your own share you ate half of my bread and you still don’t have enough?” Mikasa lowered her voice to a whisper.

“I can’t help it. But… what are you going to do now?”

“… I guess I’ll keep watch while you take what you need.” Sasha smiled widely and went back to her search. “Just don’t take too much.” Mikasa added as she positioned herself at the window.

After a while Sasha showed her catch to Mikasa. A small raw potato, and half a bread.

“That’s all I could find.” she said disappointed. “There’s one locked closet, I think the food is hidden there. The bread is fine, I guess, but what can I do with a raw potato?”

“If you burry it in the ground you’ll have much more potatoes in a few months time.” Mikasa said.

“Then I’d just have a bunch of raw potatoes.”

“We can cook them over a fire. Just think about it, you’d have snacks enough for weeks.”

“Ok!” Sasha cheerfully leapt outside. “So, where do you think we should plant it?”

Mikasa looked around, it had to be somewhere the sun always reached, but not many people walked. She lead Sasha just behind the corner of their dorm. It was close to the edge of the terrain, and as proof  that people didn’t come here much, all kinds of plants were growing freely. She picked up a flat rock and started digging.

Sasha watched while chewing on her bread. When the hole was deep enough Mikasa stretched out her hand, and Sasha gave her the potato. After having placed it in the ground and covered with earth, Mikasa whipped the dirt off her hands to the grass. It was fun to do something secretly together with Sasha, but planting the potato brought back memories of her parents.

Sasha saw her eyes getting wet, and pulled the black haired girl in a tight hug. Mikasa tried her best to stop them, but the tears silently rolled down her cheeks, dripping on the other girl’s shoulder.

“Shh, it’s okay.” Sasha patted her back.

Mikasa stopped crying, now simply enjoying the embrace. “Sorry.” She muttered in Sasha’s ear.

“Don’t worry about it, that’s where friends are for.” She released Mikasa and whipped the wet trails off her cheeks. “Come on, let’s get back to bed.”

The next day, after training, Mikasa was searching for Sasha. She wasn’t at the dining hall, trying to get some food from others like she always did. She wasn’t in the dorm either. She looked among the other trainees who were enjoying their free hour together. It was rare for her to disappear. But then Mikasa thought of the night before, could it be?

Mikasa walked around the dorm’s corner, and there she was, sitting next to the brown bulge of earth that marked the spot they planted the potato.

“It won’t grow that fast, you know.” She said and sat down next to the brunette.

“I know, but it’s a nice spot. If you sit down they can’t see you through the windows, and if you don’t sit too close to the corner, you can’t be seen from the grounds either. Perfect place for lazing in the evening sun.” She placed her hands in her neck and leaned to the wall, her eyes closed.

Mikasa looked at the other girl, her brown locks turning copper in the golden sunlight. Her skin smooth and beautiful, it would probably be soft, if only she dared to touch it. Her pink lips, slightly curved in the cutest smile. A breeze blew Sasha’s sweet scent in Mikasa’s face. Mesmerized she kept looking at Sasha’s lips, only able to think of how it would feel to kiss them.

“You know,” Sasha interrupted Mikasa’s fantasy, her eyes still closed. “When I first met you, I thought you were an overly serious loner, but you really are a nice girl. Now don’t take this badly, but I think you deserve better than Eren. He doesn’t treat you the way a guy should treat his girlfriend.” She opened her eyes to see haw Mikasa reacted.

“No! He isn’t my boyfriend! He’s family.” Mikasa said with a red face.

“Sorry, I just assumed, since you are always so close to him.” Sasha replied, taken aback.

“No, I don’t have a boyfriend. And I don’t think I’ll ever have one.”

“Oh, c’mon, I’m sure there are enough candidates. How about Jean?” She now faced Mikasa, her expression as excited as if someone offered her some food.

“No.” Mikasa said, the blush quickly fading from her face.

“Reiner?” she shook her head. “Berthold? Marco? Conny? Armin?” Sasha kept asking until she couldn’t think of any boy’s name she hadn’t said yet, but Mikasa kept shaking her head. “Did I miss someone?” she asked herself out loud.

“Like I said, I don’t think I’ll ever have a boyfriend.” Mikasa said. She was growing bored with the subject, but for some reason her heart beated faster than usual.

Sasha suddenly gasped, and her excited expression returned to her face. “Could it be you’re into girls?”

Mikasa felt her face getting hot, she didn’t know the answer to the question. Whether she thought of a yes or no, they both felt wrong.

“Oooh!” Sasha beamed at the silence of the black haired girl. “Now this is interesting. Do you have a crush on someone sleeping in our dorm?” Mikasa’s face turned to an even brighter red, she tried to hide her face in her scarf, but it was no use, even her ears were tomato-colored.

After a moment of silence Mikasa mumbled “I don’t know.”

“That’s what your mouth says, but your face says yes.” Mikasa didn’t react, staring blankly at the ground. “Fine, I’ll drop it. Let me know when you find out, though.” She got up and started walking away. “It’s not me, is it?” she suddenly said. Mikasa’s eyes grew large, a shock pulsing through her body, but Sasha didn’t see it and walked around the corner, leaving a confused Mikasa behind.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

That night Mikasa wasn’t able to sleep. She stared up at the ceiling, but her thoughts were with the girl below her. Why did she react like that when Sasha asked her if she liked girls? Why had she been so shocked when she asked if it was her? Sure, she had that weird feeling whenever she was with Sasha, but love? Was it really? Could she be in love with her?

Eventually she was able to fall asleep, but morning came way to soon. The blaring horn announced the start of the day. All the girls quickly put on their clothes and headed for their breakfast.

Mikasa, who was still half asleep barely touched her food, her thoughts were elsewhere. She had dreamed that Sasha kissed her, just thinking about it made blood flow back to her cheeks. Sasha noticed and poked Mikasa to get her attention.

“Still thinking about our conversation of last night?” she asked.

Mikasa nodded lightly, the blush on her face deepening. Sasha placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Best not to worry about it, now, eat your breakfast, training is about to start and you’ll need it.”

Mikasa looked at her food, she would’ve expected Sasha to ask if she could have it rather than to tell her to eat it.

Another day of harsh training passed, and in the little free time they had after dinner, Mikasa sat down behind the dorm. It did not take long for Sasha to show up. Instead of sitting down next to Mikasa, she lay down and placed her head on the other girl’s lap.

“This is starting to feel like this is our secret place.” Sasha said, a light blush on her face.

“Yeah.” Mikasa replied dreamily as she stroked the brown locks.

“Tonight, when everyone is asleep, wanna go for a walk?”

“A walk? You mean to the kitchen?” she asked suspiciously.

“No, just a walk. You know, explore the grounds at night. Something like that.”

“Sure.” Mikasa wondered what had gotten into Sasha. If she wanted to talk about something, she could say it now, she would be the only one to hear it anyway. Mikasa looked at the brunette, who had closed her eyes. She closed her own eyes as well, seemingly she wouldn’t get much sleep this night either.

It was dark inside the dorm, and Mikasa had almost fallen asleep when she heard the floor creaking. She pushed herself up with a huge effort, away from the beckoning land of dreams. She sighed as she climbed down her bed, where Sasha waited for her. Sasha grabbed her hand and lead her outside.

Clouds shrouded the moon, making it impossible to see further than a meter ahead. Slowly they walked on, still holding hands. Mikasa’s whole body tingled with nerves and excitement. Walking through the darkness, connected to Sasha by a single hand, cut off from the rest, as if the world existed only for the two of them.

They reached some trees, and walked a little further until they came across a fallen log. Sasha sat down on it, Mikasa followed her example.

“We’re all alone, no one can hear us, and it’s too dark for me to even see your face.”

“Your point?” Mikasa asked.

“Well, maybe now you feel safe enough to tell me who you like?”

“What?! You take me out here in the middle of the night just for that? I could’ve been asleep by now!”

A gap in the clouds allowed the moonlight to filter through the tree leaves, illuminating the area enough for Mikasa to see what Sasha was doing. The brunette placed her hands on the log, crawling closer to Mikasa.

“Are you perhaps hoping to see a certain someone in your dreams?” she said with a seductive voice.

“Sasha?” Mikasa leaned back as Sasha kept crawling closer.

Mikasa tried to get away from the girl’s confusing behavior, but Sasha’s hands suddenly shot up, grabbing Mikasa’s wrists, pinning her down. “Where do you think you’re going? You didn’t answer the question yet.” She hovered over Mikasa with a taunting smile.

Mikasa’s heart pounded rapidly, she was sure her face was as red as Sasha’s.

“What question?” She couldn’t think anymore, being restrained by the girl she loved like that.

Sasha leaned in, until her mouth was next to Mikasa’s ear. “Who is it you like?” she breathed.

Her head was empty, all she wanted was for Sasha to kiss her. She turned her head, but Sasha’s lips were just out of her reach. “Sasha.” She said in a hot voice.

Upon hearing her name she turned her face slightly towards Mikasa’s, her eyes widening as the black haired girl pressed her lips to her own. Sasha moaned and soon lost herself in the kiss. Mikasa got turned on by Sasha’s moans and intensified the kiss. They broke off, gasping for air, staring into each other’s eyes.

“I love you.” Sasha breathed against Mikasa’s lips.

“I love you too.” She replied and gave her a kiss.

“I love you.” Sasha said again. “And I always will.”

“I will always love you too.” She gave Sasha another kiss. Sasha moved down and started placing kisses on Mikasa’s throat.

“Mmm, Sasha.” She moaned, encouraging the girl to move even further down, to edge of her dressing gown. Mikasa shivered with excitement as she paused there. Then she traced a way back up with her tongue, over her collarbones, her throat, her chin, and when she arrived at her lips they resumed their kiss.

Sasha released Mikasa from her restrain and pulled her in a tight hug. “I love you, my sweet, beautiful Mikasa.”

“I love you too. But I never expected you to be so… forceful.”

“And I never expected you wouldn’t even try to break free.”

A yawn escaped from Mikasa’s mouth and Sasha freed her from the embrace, only to pick her up and carry her away.

“Sasha? What are you doing?”

“Carrying my angel to her bed, before she falls asleep in the forest, surrounded by beasts.”

“You’d be the only beast I’d have to watch out for.” Sasha chuckled.

Sasha opened the dorm’s door, carrying the already asleep Mikasa as quiet as she could to her bed. She couldn’t possibly lift Mikasa in the topmost bed, so Sasha decided to switch beds for one night. She laid Mikasa down on her bed and tucked her in.

“Goodnight, my love.” She whispered and placed a kiss on the sleeping beauty’s lips, then climbed up to the empty bed awaiting her. Mikasa’s scent clung to the pillow, and Sasha was sure she would sleep well tonight. And she did.

Several months later, after yet another harsh day of training, Mikasa sneaked behind the dorm, her arms loaded with branches. Sasha looked up at her, a questioning look on her beautiful face.

“I gathered some firewood.” Mikasa laid the bundle of branches down and started placing some of them on a cleared spot. She took out a matchbox and started a fire.

“Why are you making a fire?” Sasha wondered.

“To prepare your midnight snack. Or did you forget we planted that potato here?”

“Oh, right. That’s how this became our secret place.”

Mikasa glanced at her. “So you did forget.”

“It’s been months since then! You can hardly blame me for forgetting.”

“You watched me plant it, and after that… How could you forget that?!”

“Oh, right. I can still clearly remember how cute you were, clinging onto me like that. No wonder I forgot about the potato.” She teased and placed a kiss on Mikasa’s lips.

“Why don’t you start digging up some potatoes, I have my hands full trying to keep this fire from extinguishing.”

Sasha picked the same flat rock Mikasa used all those months ago, and greedily started digging. “Look at the size of these things!” She waved a potato in front of Mikasa’s face.

Mikasa smiled at her girlfriend’s elated face and said, “That’s nice, but its full of dirt. If you go wash them I’m sure the fire will be big enough by the time you get back.”

Sasha ran off, she always managed to get excited over all kinds of small things. It was nice to have such a cheerful person by her side, Mikasa thought. Whenever they were together, it was easy to forget the hardships they faced almost daily.

Sasha returned, handing Mikasa the smallest of the two potatoes. They pierced the food onto sticks and held it above the fire. Sasha started drooling as they waited longer and longer.

“You know, the smallest one will be done first.” Mikasa said.

Sasha whipped her mouth and leaned closer to Mikasa. “In that case, perhaps I should start with an appetizer.” She placed a soft kiss on Mikasa’s lips. Mikasa was just about to deepen the kiss, when they were interrupted by the words of a third person.

“I always wondered what you two did out here every evening.”

The couple broke apart, shocked to see Annie leaning against the dorm wall.

“Oh, hey Annie, do you want some too?” Sasha asked.

“Do I look like I care about roasted potatoes? I just came to see if you weren’t setting the dorm on fire.”

“Why’d you think that?”

“There’s smoke coming from behind the dorm, everyone can see that.” Annie turned around, towards the group waiting outside the couple’s view.

“So, what’s going on there?” they heard someone ask.

“Just some lesbians roasting potatoes.” Annie replied, walking past the group.

“I guess the cat’s outa the bag now.” Mikasa said.

“Well, I don’t mind. They can all know I love this potato…” Mikasa shot her a warning glance. “… planting girl.” She quickly added.

Mikasa pulled her potato out of the fire and took a bite, ignoring the curious faces peeking around the corner. Sasha was right, it didn’t matter if they found out. At least now they knew Sasha was hers.


End file.
